News Desk: NFL Reaches Deal, So Long Replacement Refs

THE CATALYST was one of the worst calls in recent memories, when in the “Monday Night Football,” with the Seattle Seahawks beating the Green Bay Packers, all hell broke loose on a touch down call denied to the Packers.

It precipitated one of the first bipartisan moments in 10 years, with conservatives railing against the non-union refs, embracing union professionals, after that call on “Monday Night Football.”

The tentative eight-year deal is the longest involving on-field officials in NFL history and was reached with the assistance of two federal mediators. It must be ratified by 51 percent of the union’s 121 members, who plan to vote Friday and Saturday in Dallas.

The agreement hinged on working out salary, pension and retirement benefits for the officials, who are part-time employees of the league. Tentatively, it calls for their salaries to increase from an average of $149,000 a year in 2011 to $173,000 in 2013, rising to $205,000 by 2019.

[…] The NFL said in a statement Tuesday that the touchdown pass should not have been overturned — but acknowledged Tate should have been called for offensive pass interference before the catch. The league also said there was no indisputable evidence to reverse the call made on the field.